Transforming Water from a Strategy of War to an Asset for Peace
Publisher: Geneva Water Hub and Lund University
Date: 2018
Topics: Cooperation, Renewable Resources
In his welcome note, Ulf Maunsbach (Head of the Law Department, Lund University) reflected upon the luxury afforded to him and people like himself in countries such as Sweden with unlimited resources of water. In order to improve access to water, he underlined that collaborations with people from academia, governmental agencies, UN organs, NGOs etc., such as those present at the Conference was critical. Britta Sjöstedt (Lund University) and Mara Tignino (University of Geneva/ Geneva Water Hub) noted that the reflections on water in post-conflict situations began after a workshop in Geneva two years ago (14 June 2016, more information available here). Two aspects were highlighted, the impact of armed conflict on water but also the impact of the conflict on the environment more broadly. The role of the UN Security Council was underlined in this context. François Münger (Director of the Geneva Water Hub) provided an overview of the work of the Geneva Water Hub, as well as the recommendations of the Global High-Level Panel on Water and Peace.
The Panel was launched by 15 co-convening countries in November 2015. Following four main sessions of the panel (in Switzerland, Senegal, Costa Rica and Jordan, respectively), the recommendations from these sessions are included in the report “A Matter of Survival”.
Mr. Münger provided a brief summary of each chapter of the report. He noted that the document is specific in that not only transboundary conflicts are mentioned, but also inter-sectorial conflicts connected to water at the domestic level. In addition, although cooperation is critical for water management, existing financial instruments do not often support the risks and costs related to design of projects in transboundary waters.